As specialists regretfully state, the contribution of super-distributors to the infection of people is great. The maximum case in Russia was recorded when one and a half thousand people were infected from one carrier of the coronavirus, reports Vector.
Alexander Semyonov, head of the Yekaterinburg branch of the State Research Center for Virology and Biotechnology “Vector” of Rospotrebnadzor, says that COVID-19 spreads through social contacts. On average, each carrier of the coronavirus infects two to three people, in the case of the Delta strain, five to six.
However, in some cases, a person can become a super-distributor. This happens if he does not observe social distance, does not use a mask, and then, having signs of deterioration in well-being, ends up in a crowded room (for example, transport) or communicates too closely with colleagues at work. The virologist says:
We all understand that coronavirus infection spreads by airborne droplets, that is, it spreads as much as possible through social contacts. If a person does not observe social distance, does not wear a mask, especially if he does not feel very well, <...> goes to a crowded subway car, comes to work and starts hugging and kissing with everyone, then he has a chance to become a super-distributor and infect a huge number of people. His disregard for the norms of social distancing, he creates opportunities for the super-spread of infection.
The number of super-distributors, quotes Semenov Lenta.ru, can reach 80% in some regions. These include people who infect the number of others in excess of the average rate. Most often, infection occurs at public events. But even under normal circumstances, about 50% of infections occur from super-distributors that have signs of the disease and do not comply with sanitary standards (mask, distancing) when in contact with people.
What is the difference between the super-spreader and the usual carrier of the coronavirus? Russian virologist Alexander Chepurnov, a leading researcher at the Institute of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, explains that, due to individual characteristics, for example, the viscosity of saliva, such people differ in the size of aerogenic particles they exhale when talking or breathing. This parameter affects how deeply the virus contained in them enters the body of others.
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